


Falling Into Place

by Hereliesbethboland



Category: Good Girls (TV)
Genre: Drinking, Explicit Language, F/M, Flirting, Fluff and Smut, Friendship, Humor, Prompt Fill, Romance, Sexual Content, Unprotected Sex
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-26
Updated: 2021-01-26
Packaged: 2021-03-12 04:14:08
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,877
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29004300
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hereliesbethboland/pseuds/Hereliesbethboland
Summary: For the Prompt-a-thon:"Drunk!Beth and Drunk!Rio set after 3.11 when they are celebrating their first month in business together. Would love if they were celebrating with the girls and Stan and Mick."
Relationships: Beth Boland/Rio
Comments: 25
Kudos: 103





	Falling Into Place

**Author's Note:**

> thank you to Wakeupflawless and Medievalraven for the help with this. <3

Beth puts the updated ledger back into her desk’s file drawer, locking it in safe and secure before sitting back in her chair and closing her eyes for a moment. 

It’s Thursday night, her Friday, and she’s leaving straight from Boland Bubbles to meet Ruby, Annie, and Stan for the first night of their celebration weekend. The thought makes her simultaneously tired and excited. 

The trip to Caesar's Windsor had been somewhat last minute; Ruby wanted to take Stan somewhere for his birthday, and since there’d been more than one thing to celebrate lately; the money, the divorce… Beth found a Groupon and they’d booked it.

And although she’s looking forward to a nice weekend away, an unidentified anxiousness has been plaguing her lately and she’s not sure she’ll be able to relax.

Ruby and Annie think it's the divorce and resulting fallout with the kids, but she and Dean had worked out a pretty efficient schedule and things seemed to be running smoothly there. They only worked together a few hours a day with Dean leaving in time for the school pick-up, and yes, they were struggling a bit to adjust; but that’s to be expected and overall her children were doing well. Even enjoyed having two sets of everything which… ok, they were spoiled, but whatever helps with the adjustment she’s fine with. 

No, this feels different. This anxiety. Like an urgency, or an itch she can’t reach. 

She enjoys the quiet of her office at night. She stays long after the salespeople go home, as she needs privacy to go over the books, and for any impromptu visits from Rio. Usually it’s Mick or Georges who come to pick up the processed and _fully washed_ cash, but every once in a while he’d show up, all cool nonchalance at whatever she’d be doing and it’s fine… they’re fine. 

The entire ordeal with Fitzpatrick had turned out to be the most anticlimactic thing she’d ever been involved in, in fact. 

She and Ruby had decided to talk to Stan when the itemized bills continued to wrack up, and the whole thing began to feel increasingly wrong. Stan had confirmed that it _was indeed wrong;_ and Beth had been relieved to squash the plan. She couldn’t go through with it anyway _,_ and had discovered shortly after that a little bit of patience and an actual system was the key to profit. 

Not that Rio was suddenly making things easy for them, but he’d given a little after she’d come up with a system that worked, and whenever she thinks about her plan to end his life… it feels devoid of logic. 

She feels other things about it too which she chooses to stuff deep, _deep_ down -- successfully chalking up the ordeal to she and the girls being in survival mode. 

In any case, she and Fitzpatrick had cut ties completely; thankfully after Stan pulled a big job at the club and they’d finally paid him the rest of what they owed. The hit-man never questioned how they’d come up with the money so quickly-- just took it and left with a polite nod of the head. 

She was happy to close that disastrous chapter. 

The girls and her promised Stan they’d communicate better with him after that; making him an unofficial co-leader to their operation. 

Beth isn’t giving up too much control, but he’s smart and savvy and much to her and Ruby’s surprise, he’d taken quite a liking to the darker side of life. He’d wanted to know all about the ladies’ new venture and then he’d filled them in on his hustle with his co-workers, which had become another branch for them. It had been a good move for the Hills; opening up a safe place for Ruby to be able to communicate and them to be able to work together. 

She feels like they have a stronger foundation now and she’s grateful for Stan. 

And when she spilled the beans to Rio over drinks one night… well…. _that_ had been an awkward conversation. Mostly because he’d laughed so hard tears poured down his face. 

Afterwards, they’d reached somewhat of a truce. 

He’d doubled their workload, of course. In addition to processing and printing the cash, he’d forced them to do things _his_ way at first. Beth had developed her own system quickly at Boland Bubbles though; pushing the cash through a bevy of different avenues and he’d not been able to deny the efficiency of it. It had only been a month since the Grand Re-opening, and they’d already begun turning a profit. A big profit. And as much as she hates to admit it; Rio’s way, combined with her own was working like a charm. 

Things are going well but she’s tired. 

She knows they can’t go on like this forever with the Heidelberg press at the print shop. They need a more efficient means to print the money. Their own press for example, and possibly a graphic designer that could make _more_ plates with higher bills. Ruby had met a woman at her salon with a design background, but they’re still a little hesitant to bring anyone else in after the whole Lucy disaster. 

She doesn’t want to even think about that. 

In her mind she’s been expanding the business, though-- only putting things into action here and there with a few google searches. The antique machines are rare and expensive; not impossible to find, but she’d need Rio’s help for sure. 

Things _have_ been good between them lately. They’d shared drinks a few times while pouring over the books, Rio’s accounting skills are admittedly impressive and though the tenuousness is still there, a new type of easiness was beginning to form between them. Despite that, she’s not about to admit to feeling overwhelmed after only a month of this. 

A soft rap on her door pulls her from her thoughts and she knows who it is without looking. 

“Hey,” Rio says, striding in. She smiles tightly at him.“You done with the books for this month?” 

Beth re-opens her drawer and pulls out the ledger, handing it to him over the desk. 

She stacks some paperwork at the corner of her desk and then stands and pulls on her coat, all too aware of his commanding presence and wondering why he’s still sitting there. He usually takes what he needs and leaves. 

“Is there anything else?” she asks. 

Rio’s eyes travel over her form. “You goin’ out?” 

She remembers her state of dress then; suddenly self-conscious of the fact that she’d decided to wear a dress that fit her perfectly before Jane was born and was now just a _tad_ too tight. Annie had insisted she wear something sexy. Her exact words had been -- 

“Y _ou need a hottie to fuck some life back into your zombie crotch.”_

It was a disgusting thing to say, and Beth has no intention of fucking anyone, let alone some random guy she potentially meets in a bar. But she’d worn the dress anyway; a black satin wrap, and though it's a bit tight around her ass, it holds her breasts perfectly, framing her cleavage at a nice angle. She likes it. 

In fact the longer she stands there, Rio’s eyes raking over her like she’s his last meal, she thinks she _loves_ the damn thing. But she’d rather pretend otherwise; getting caught up in his gaze is the last thing she needs to be doing. 

“Yes,” she says, fidgeting as she feels the tell-tale warmth spread, willing her body not to blush when he hums. 

“Mhm. So if you’ll excuse me…. I have to…” she walks past him, out of her office and stops in front of a large mirror, setting her purse on the table in front of it. 

She resists the urge to look at him when he appears behind her; going about lining her eyes. He comes in close at her side, leaning on his elbow to watch her. 

She stops and looks at him. 

“What are you doing?” 

“Where you guys goin’?” he asks, ignoring her question. 

“Why?” 

He shrugs and she wonders if he wants to hang out, quickly brushing off the thought. 

Beth eyes him in the mirror as she twists her lipstick up and leans in to apply it. He’s staring openly at her breasts and when she’s finished she turns to him, crossing her arms in front of her. 

“Subtle,” she says, biting back a smile as his eyes take their sweet time coming back to her face. 

“That’s cute,” he says lifting his chin towards her.

“Cute?” 

“Mhm.” 

“That’s not exactly the look I was going for.” 

“It's not?” He steps closer to her and she has to tilt her head back to keep eye contact. “You ain't tryin’ to catch another yes-man after you just got rid a' one?” 

Beth glares at him before stepping away. 

“I’ll let you lock up,” she says, walking briskly to the back door, her heels clicking in a satisfying way as she moves away from him and all the confusing shit she doesn’t feel like dealing with right now. 

She steps out into the night, the spring air feeling nice on her flushed skin. Her phone rings as she walks across the parking lot to her car. 

“Hey.” 

“Hey. Did you leave yet?” 

“Leaving right now. Were you able to get the suite?” 

“Yes and it’s _nice,”_ Ruby says. “Stan’s been in the bathroom for the last hour. He won’t come out.” 

“TMI,” Beth says, starting her car and pulling out. She sees Rio’s lights go on behind her and rolls her eyes when he turns the same direction as she does- toward the highway. 

She hears Stan yelling something and she laughs. “What’s he saying?” she asks Ruby. 

“Oh he wants you to know he’s not pooping he’s just having a steam,” she says. 

“Oh my god. Ok I’ll be there in like 15 minutes.” 

“K, bye.” 

Beth looks out her rearview mirror and watches as Rio’s G-wagon comes speeding up behind her and zooms past as she turns onto the highway towards Windsor. She breathes a sigh of relief that he’s not following her, and on the exhale she feels a flash of disappointment which she quickly stuffs. 

****

Beth looks around the inviting atmosphere of the casino’s cocktail bar from her spot on the circular couch they're currently lounging on. So far it's been nice and low-key; Stan not wanting anything to do with a loud club scene. 

_“I deal with that every night,”_ he’d told them. 

The recessed lighting above them is washing the space in a soft blue glow and the mid-century modern decor is giving her a serious Jetson’s vibe. 

“This place is cool, right?” Stan asks them and Annie salutes him with her drink 

“It's great. There’s just like, no dudes.” 

Beth looks around and it's true there isn’t a huge selection of men but it's not surprising as this place seems like sort of a stopping off point before the real party begins; most of the sitting areas filled with middle-aged couples probably at the resort for their wedding anniversary or something equally as boring. 

She likes the music though. It’s mostly instrumentals but with a sort of hip hop beat. Very chill… just what she needs after the crazy week she’d had. And after her brief interaction with Rio tonight. 

“Stop thinking,” Ruby says, pulling Beth from her thoughts. 

“Sorry I was zoning out.” 

“Well try not to stress this is our _relax_ weekend,” Ruby says. 

“Wait a minute wait a minute,” Stan says. “I thought this was Stan’s birthday weekend?” 

“It’s also get-Beth-laid weekend,” Annie says. 

“Annie…” Beth warns, rolling her eyes. 

“Zombie crotch,” she says, winking at her.

“I’m getting another round,” Beth says, standing. They give her their drink orders and she walks to the bar, aware of several interested onlookers in her periphery. 

_It’s nice to be appreciated_ she tells herself, smiling back at a handsome-looking man before noticing a not-so-happy woman sitting next to him. Her face immediately drops and looks away, refocusing on her path to the blue-lit bar. 

The bartender sets the two vodka-crans, and two bourbons down in front of her and she opens her clutch to grab some cash. 

“I got this one.” 

Her eyes lift at the familiar raspy voice to see Rio sliding a $50 across the bartop. She doesn’t say anything as the bartender takes the cash. 

“You need change, man?” 

“Nah just grab me a Modelo too, please,” he says, flashing the man a friendly smile before looking at Beth.

Beth’s eyelashes flutter in confusion as she stares at him, the flick of his gaze to her chest breaking the spell and causing her to clear her throat. 

“What are you doing here?” she asks, glancing in the direction of the table and wondering if they see him. They must. 

Rio shrugs, leaning his forearm on the bar and taking his beer when the bartender slides it in front of him. 

“Had a business meeting up the street, thought we’d chill, you know. Experience the nightlife,” he says, a smirk playing on his lips. 

“Hm. That’s such a coincidence,” she says, eyes narrowing and a smile breaks out on his face.

“I know, right?” 

Beth looks behind him and notices Mick there a few spaces down, nursing his own drink. 

“Hey,” she calls out and he looks up and nods. She brings her eyes back to Rio and lifts an eyebrow. “Do you guys ever just hang out together or is he always, like, sitting an awkward distance from you?” 

Rio dips his head, chuckling and then takes a sip of his beer. “He’s gotta watch for hit-men,” he says, and she sees Mick huff. 

“Great, well. I have to get back, so...” she says, taking three of the drinks into a server hold and then looking at the other one before setting them back down and trying again to situate all four in her hands. 

Rio grabs two of the drinks before she can protest, dangling his own beer in his long fingers. 

“C’mon. I’ll come say hi,” he says. 

Beth takes a deep breath as she walks back toward the table. Both Ruby and Annie’s eyes are on her and she makes a helpless gesture at their questioning gazes. She sets Ruby and Stan’s drinks down and takes her spot next to Annie, immediately grabbing her drink and downing half of it. 

Rio nods to the girls who look between one another. Ruby’s gaze shifts between Stan and Rio nervously, and Stan looks at the women like they’ve grown extra heads. 

“Hey,” he says, reaching out his hand to Rio. “Stan.” 

“Rio,” he says, shaking Stan’s hand. 

“You guys know Beth?” 

“Yeah you could say that,” Rio says. 

“Why's everyone acting weird,” Stan asks. 

“Because,” Annie says, eyes flicking nervously from him to Rio. “That’s…. our… that’s _gangfriend_ ,” she mouths to him and Rio huffs as Stan’s eyes widen in realization.

He looks at Ruby who nods. Since partnering up with Stan, they’d filled him in on almost everything, the exception being what went down with Lucy, in order to bring him into the fold. 

But he’d yet to meet Rio. 

Stan eyes the other man warily but Beth see’s the diplomacy below the surface; which… that’s just Stan. He’s always giving people the benefit of the doubt. 

“Nice to meet you,” Rio says. “Ya’ll have a good night.” 

He turns back to the bar and she watches as he takes the stool next to Mick, and they laugh at something. She tries to ignore the flash that zips through her when a beautiful woman sits next to him, tearing her eyes away and back to the group. 

“What. The hell,” Ruby says to her. 

Beth shakes her head. “I have no idea. I don’t even know how he knew…” she looks over at him again and he’s angled towards the woman, talking with her. 

“Stalker,” Annie scoffs. “I thought you guys were better now.” 

“We are, I mean… we have been.” 

“He probably just keeps tabs on ya’ll. I mean… you did try and have him killed,” Stan says, taking a drink and looking between the three of them. 

“Not a bad point,” Ruby says. 

Beth wracks her brain for possible missteps or inconsistencies, but in her mind, things had been running smoothly. They’d been getting along and were even friendly some nights. Maybe he’d really wanted to hang out with her...?

“Did you ask him?” Annie asks. 

“Ask him what?” 

“Why he’s here.” 

“Yeah, he said he had a meeting.” 

Annie scoffs and crosses her arms. “Yeah right.” 

“Don’t talk to him, B. Just… try and ignore him,” Ruby says and Stan laughs. 

“What’s so funny?” 

“Nothing,” he says. “This just feels like Westlake High lunch hour.”

“That’s actually a pretty accurate way to describe their interactions. It's like, even _less_ mature,” Annie says. “Think, middle school.” 

“He keeps looking over here,” Stan says to Beth who turns and looks at Rio again. Sure enough his eyes are on her as he takes a drink of his beer then turns his attention to the woman next to him, flashing her a charming smile.

“Is he tryin' to make you jealous?” 

“No! He’s just… this isn’t that. I probably owe him money or something.” 

“Do you…? I mean, do we? Owe him? We just gave him his cut. I counted it out,” Annie says. 

“No… I don’t think so but who knows with him.” 

“Nah. that boy has a crush,” Stan says. “Look at him.” 

“Except he’s not a _boy._ He’s ruthless. And scary,” Annie says. 

“And he’s givin’ some serious heart eyes.” 

“Ok, that’s enough. Let’s just go,” Beth says. “Can we?”

She’s feeling hot all over, exposed and just…. she can’t stop wanting to look at him. It’s pissing her off. 

“Yes let’s,” Ruby says. “Should we hit up the night club?” 

Stan groans, reluctantly agreeing when Ruby tells him she’ll dance up on him. 

“Whatever gets us somewhere with people younger than fifty,” Annie says. 

They down their drinks; the quantity of bourbon going down her throat in one go burns, but she welcomes the buzzing edge that quickly follows. As they head toward the exit of the lounge, Beth feels Rio’s stare but avoids it, choosing instead to give Mick a tight-lipped smile as she passes. 

****

Despite hitting all the cliche nightclub boxes, Club Ariius isn’t too bad, Beth observes once they find a cozy spot far enough away from the lively dance floor that they don’t have to yell to hear one another. The space is enormous; the dance floor sectioned off so that those who want to lounge can do so comfortably, in a surprisingly inviting atmosphere. She’d noticed the polished concrete floors right away and the transitional lighting-- very high-end. The warm glow makes her skin look amazing, which is always a plus. 

The group is on their third round of drinks and she’s not drunk yet. But she’s definitely not sober. 

Her side hurts from laughing as Annie regales them with the latest tale from her online dating experience. She’d recently been catfished and the guy ended up being a basement dweller who’s only accomplishment was high scores in video games. 

“Oh no! But it's _world-wide_! He’d really wanted to make that clear that he’s playing against people from all over the world.” 

“From his basement,” Ruby says. 

“From his mother’s basement,” Annie clarifies and Beth giggles. 

“Hey, at least he’s living somewhere. Unlike the last guy,” she says, snorting.

Stan laughs out. “You dated a homeless dude?” 

“I wouldn’t say _dated_ , exactly.” 

“For God’s sake,” Beth says and Annie rolls her eyes. 

“You really wanna go there with judging my taste in men?” 

Beth gives her a look, finishing off her drink and then takes out her lipstick and her compact.

“Isn’t that what we’re doing right now?” she asks, sliding the color lightly over her bottom lip and then rubbing her lips together. 

“Why don’t you take a break from men,” Ruby says to Annie. 

“What like, date women?” 

Beth scoffs. 

“Noo… I’m sayin’ don’t date. Like period.” 

“What?” Beth asks Annie when she realizes she’s staring at her.

“What if i did date a woman?” 

“Then I’d feel obligated to warn her,” Beth says slowly, enunciating in her favorite mom-tone. 

“Whatever.” 

“Come on guys, give baby-sis a break,” Stan says. 

“Thank you, _Stan._ You got any single friends looking to mingle?” 

“Nope,” he says and they all start laughing. 

“You guys suck,” Annie says, standing up. “And I have to pee.” 

When Annie gets back she has an anxious look on her face and Beth regards her in confusion. 

“You-know-who is here,” she tells Beth. 

“No.. are you serious?” Ruby asks and Annie nods, sitting back down. 

“You guys, it's fine,” Beth says. “It doesn't really bother me.”

“Yeah. No shit it doesn’t bother you. You’re probably happy he’s here,” Annie says. 

“What!? No I’m n--”

“Oh my god! You are!” Annie points at Beth’s face. “Blush!” 

“I’m not blushing.” 

“How can you see if she’s blushing?” Stan asks, leaning into her face. 

“You guys, stop. He likes to intimidate us,” Beth says, glancing around the club, looking for him as subtly as possible. “Just ignore him.” 

“Kind of hard to do when we know he could just blast our brains all over the dance floor if he wanted to,” Annie says. 

Stan looks between the women. “He like that? Is this dude like a mob boss or somethin?” 

“We don’t know exactly who he is,” Ruby says and the accuracy of the statement hits Beth differently than it ever has. 

She doesn’t know him. And yet… she feels like she sort of _knows_ him. 

Not because they’d slept together but some deeper reason, thing, whatever. There’s a connection she knows is there but doesn’t quite understand, and she’d only started flirting with the idea of it... allowing the reality of its mysterious existence to take up space in her head. 

“He’s not going to shoot anyone,” she says, struck by how a sentence like that can just flow out of her like she’s reassuring someone of their decision to wear white after Labor day. 

Nothing is normal about their lifestyle. But she’s tired of feeling threatened by him. Tired of her best friend and her sister feeling threatened. 

Suddenly she spots him; he’s standing at the bar clicking around on his phone, the warm glow of the bar lights illuminating his profile, and she swallows at the way his lip protrudes. 

“I’m gonna bring him over,” she says, eyes steadfast on him. 

“What? Why?!” Ruby asks. 

Beth shrugs. “Call his bluff. Beat him at his own game? I don’t know. I’m sick of him thinking he can rile us up like this. Aren’t you guys?” 

“I’m more like ‘let's limit interaction with volatile gangfriend and volatile gangfriend’s volatile sidekick’," Annie says. 

“No, she’s right,” Stan says and all eyes go to him. 

“She is?” 

“Mhm. Bring him over. Let’s get to know this guy who stole Beth’s virtue.” 

Beth looks incredulously at Ruby. “You told him!?” Ruby shrugs and Stan laughs. 

“You kept secrets from him for a year but you told him that,” she says. 

“It was juicy!” 

Beth rolls her eyes and gets up, running her tongue over her teeth for rogue lipstick, and heads to the bar. He sees her coming and his eyes trace over her from top to bottom and back up as she makes her way to him, focusing on the way the water runs over the rock feature behind the bar and she feels a sort-of newness start to wash over her.

“Sup, Mrs. B,” Mick says. 

“You guys wanna join us?” she asks, cutting to the chase, allowing a light breathiness to invade her voice and softening her eyes for added affect. Rio squints in mild question and chews his lip. Her gaze flits down _again_ and the familiar warmth spreads through her chest. 

This time she welcomes it. 

“Aight.” 

****

(Two hours later) 

“And she was like… _‘how dare you!’_ and straight slapped the guy.” Stan says, laughing. 

Beth buries her face in her hands as Rio’s deep chuckle sounds out from across the table. 

“I never heard this story!” Annie says, shoving Beth. She shoves her back and Annie falls off the edge of the couch making everyone laugh harder.

“Sorry,” Beth says, halfheartedly helping her back up.

“Y'all a trip,” Rio says, taking a sip of his beer. 

As Beth’s giggles taper off, she finds herself momentarily distracted by the flutter of the bird’s wings on his neck as he swallows. 

They'd moved to a table closer to the dance floor, feeling less out of place in the sea of 20-somethings the longer the alcohol flowed. 

“What about _him_?” Beth asks Mick who hasn’t said a word all night. 

“What about him,” he answers back. 

“I wanna hear an embarrassing story about our boss, here.” 

She’s pretty inebriated now; can hear the pitch change of her own voice, but so is he. Rio. And everyone else. 

Mick shrugs. “He don’t do embarrassing shit.” 

Beth rolls her eyes. “You’re laaamme,” she tells Mick who huffs and shakes his head. 

Rio is quiet, but she knows he’s observing the exchange with interest. 

“I mean… there was that one time,” he says, looking over at Rio. “With that Candace chick.” 

Beth smiles conspiratorially once she clocks the murderous look in Rio’s eyes.

“Tell us,” she says. 

“Let’s just say… instead of giving her a night to remember, our boy here got so drunk he passed out. When I came in the room the next morning his skinny ass was laid out on the bed in nothin’ but his socks, virtue still in tact.”

Annie does a spit take across the table and Stan whoops and starts giggling. 

Rio’s eyes narrow on Mick, then flit to Beth when she speaks.

“Wait.. wait… where was Candance?” Beth asks and Mick starts laughing. 

“Bitch hooked up with Rio’s little brother.” 

She snorts and looks at Rio, full on laughing when she sees the pissed off look on his face. 

“Aww..” she says, trying to catch her breath. “That’s so cute!” 

The laughter picks back up-- Rio joining them in his own subtle fashion, and as it dies down again their eyes meet; the happy vibes swirling around them making Beth itch with the need to be closer to him. 

“Where did y’all grow up?” Stan asks him. 

Rio’s eyes flick from Stan to Beth and she holds her breath, anticipating his answer but doubtful that he’s actually going to divulge the information. 

“Montreal,” he says easily, taking another drink, eyes still on her and she blinks a ridiculous amount of times, piecing together another part of him in her mind. 

“You’re Canadian?” Ruby asks.

"Yeh.” 

“I can see it,” Annie says, squinting at him. 

“What’s that sposed’ to mean,” Rio asks her and she holds her hands up in surrender. 

Beth stares at him for a long drawn out moment and he takes another drink and smiles at her. 

“Do you like hockey?” she asks him and he nods, smile growing and then _she’s_ smiling too, unsure why any of this is so amusing to her but it is and.… 

Annie waves her hand in front of Beth’s face. 

“Hello. Stop staring at gangfriend,” she says, slurring a bit. Beth clears her throat and looks away. 

“I’m not,” she says, slightly embarrassed as her eyes immediately go back to his. He’s looking at Annie with his brows drawn up. 

“What’d you just call me?” he asks and they all dissolve into laughter again. 

A few minutes later everyone is pretty smashed and enjoying the music. Ruby and Stan are in their own little world, it seems, and the way they’re wrapped around one another makes Beth’s heart ache in joy. 

_I fucking love them so much,_ she thinks. 

She looks over at Annie who’s telling Mick the story about their botched robbery and how she saved Ruby’s leg. 

_I fucking love her too._

“I fucking love you,” Beth yells out then and Annie stops. 

“What?” she asks, smiling. 

“I said I fucking love you.” 

“I fucking love you too, sis.” Annie says and Ruby rolls her eyes. 

Beth’s eyes catch Rio’s again, the two sets drawing back time and again like magnets, and he looks caught between amusement and curiosity but there’s something else there; something she’s never seen before and that she can’t put her finger on. 

The beat of the music draws her under, it’s loud but the acoustics in the club are good, creating a pleasant pulse that thrums around her and as the alcohol starts to really take hold of her senses, she closes her eyes and starts to move. 

“I like this song,” she yells out with her eyes closed. 

“Me too,” Ruby says. 

Annie gets up. “C’mon. Lets dance,” she says. Beth scrunches her nose and remains seated, content to enjoy the music from her spot on the couch. 

“I’m down,” Stan says, rising up and holding his hand out for Ruby. “Come on, baby. Lets see those moves.” 

Beth smiles as she watches Ruby and Stan walk to the dance floor. 

“They’re so cute,” she says. 

“What?” Mick asks, leaning in. 

He’s sitting next to her and she feels his arm against hers. It's not terrible. It's not like she’s attracted to Mick, but she likes him. And she likes that he’s sitting close to her… she feels like they’re actual friends but maybe she’s just drunk…? 

“I said, they’re cute. Ruby and Stan.” 

Mick nods "Yeah, they are." 

Beth sees Rio looking between her and Mick.

“What?” she asks him, curious about his face and emboldened by the alcohol. 

He shrugs. “Nothin.” 

She starts moving to the beat again, rubbing her shoulder against Mick’s, purposely trying to get him to move with her. He laughs and bumps her back. 

“This is a great song,” she says loudly. 

“You sure you don’t wanna dance?” Mick asks, watching her in amusement. She looks over at him and sees his eyes dip to her breasts. 

“Do you wanna dance with me?” she asks him, aware of Rio’s watchful gaze. Mick looks across the table. 

“I’m chillin’,” he says. “But Chris has moves.” 

Beth rolls her eyes. “I’m sure he does. He can do everything and anything,” she says, blowing a raspberry and Rio. 

“You’re wasted,” Rio yells over to her. 

“What?” 

“Trashed! You!” he says louder, his wide smile charming her even as she rises to the unsaid challenge. 

“I’m fine. I’ll prove it,” she stands up and downs her drink, angling herself towards Rio and adjusting her dress, eyes locked on his. 

She feels a tightening in her chest at the sudden softness of his face, but quickly shakes it off and makes her way to the dance floor. She comes up beside Annie and starts to move her hips to the rhythmic pulse, closing her eyes as she runs her hands up the sides of her body and through her hair, and then opening them again to look at Rio. 

As suspected, he’s watching her.

His face glows a reddish pink from the lights above, and she looks down to see her own body awash in blue. She gives him a tiny smile and turns around, hoping he’ll appreciate the view. 

After a few moments of dancing she feels someone come up behind her, turning slightly to see a handsome young man who couldn’t be more than twenty-five. He touches her hip lightly and asks if she wants to dance. 

“Sure,” she says, smiling at him.

He comes in close to her body and they move together for a few seconds before she sees Annie nodding her approval, and giving her a very obvious thumbs-up. 

Beth gives her a look. Like she wants anyone Annie approves of.

The guy's hand rests on her hip, and at once she’s irritated because it's so small and _weak_ -feeling… Rio fills her vision then, grabbing her wrist and pulling her out of the other man’s grasp into his own chest. 

She hears the guy protest, but has already forgotten him as she looks up into Rio’s fiery black eyes and slowly brings her arms around his neck.

She starts to move her hips again, her lips parting when his hands dip down over the top of her ass. He’s sort of moving, not really dancing… just kind of standing there while _she_ moves but then he flips her around and buries his face in her hair. 

The hands holding her hips now are the _perfect_ size, she thinks, as she grinds back into him. 

_Snoooooooooop!_

_When the pimp's in the crib ma_

_Drop it like it's hot_

_Drop it like it's hot_

She feels the vibration of what feels like a growl and then he _is_ moving. Moving in sync with the beat and with her... his body fluid and—

_Fuck_

His hand travels up and spreads over her stomach pressing her closer and when she feels his teeth light on the shell of her ear she whimpers, covering his hand with her own as she brings the other one up to caress the back of his head. 

He can _move_ and it makes sense; the man moves gracefully around his environment and is often several steps ahead in everything he does. His skills of anticipating his partner's next move are almost too perfect a metaphor for dancing. 

She feels him hard against her then and she rubs against him with purpose, loving the way his body reacts and flows with her. The flex of his fingers, the burrowing of his face in her hair, and the vibration of the noises he’s making behind her.

It’s all making her _ache_ for him. 

She’s vaguely aware of how this looks, especially when his hand rises higher, pressing between her breasts, pinning her to him and his other has taken the spot on her stomach. But she feels so good… so _held…_ that she doesn’t really care what anyone thinks. 

They’re celebrating. 

“Fuckin’ sexiest woman on the planet,” he says, his words making her soar. “... _want you_.” 

“You’re drunk,” she says, angling her face towards him and smiling lazily as she continues to move against him. 

“Always want you,” he says, moving the hand that’s on her chest up the side of her neck and into her hair. He pulls her head to the side and bites the other side of her neck and she cries out. 

“ _Rio,_ ” she breathes out, feeling him groan against her as he kisses a trail to her ear. 

“Need to be inside,” he says into her ear and she nods yes against him.

“Want my name on your lips, then.” 

“ _Mm…_ ” 

“Get a room, perverts!” 

Beth opens her eyes and sees Annie and Ruby all wide-eyed, dancing next to them —they look amused for the most part so she smiles sheepishly at them, turning in Rio’s arms.

He wraps around her and starts walking them backwards and away… 

“Wait, I need my purse,” she says as he pulls her toward the exit. 

“Mick’ll get it. Come on.” 

As soon as the elevator door closes he’s on her, holding her face and walking her backwards until they hit the mirrored siding. His hands envelope her and he leans in, the moment heavy and charged. 

They hadn’t kissed since that time in her bedroom. More specifically, while he’d been moving inside her— when he’d come panting against her mouth. The memory propels her forward and she presses her lips against his, melting into the softness of them. 

Rio responds immediately, moaning soft and low and pressing his body in as close as possible, as he meets every slide of her tongue with his own. Beth grips his forearms, fingers restless as he turns her face side to side, tasting her from every angle. She bites his lower lip and then sucks it into her mouth, relishing the earthy, spicy taste of him. 

When the elevator dings, she counts her blessings that nobody’s around because his hands are everywhere as they stumble out, her heart skipping a beat at the way he laughs against her mouth and then presses her into a wall when they’re not even halfway to the room. 

“Shhh,” she says, laughing and then gasping when he burrows into her neck and bites _hard,_ her hands going to the back of his head. 

He bites his way down her neck, cupping her breast and pushing the soft flesh up to nip there, sucking a purple bruise and then laving his tongue over it. Then he moves back to her mouth, hands travelling south and yanking her skirt up as he slots his thigh between her legs and presses in. She grinds against him, tugging on his lips roughly with her teeth, when they hear a noise somewhere down the hallway. 

He steps back, pulling her with him again and they walk briskly, his arm tight around her waist until she stops to take off her shoes. He takes them from her, a ghost of a smile on his lips.

“Thank you,” she says, her eyes dipping down as they walk just to see her heels dangling from his fingers. 

“Here, this is it. Oh.. my key,” she says, blinking at him.

Rio pulls a key card out of his pocket and slips it in. Beth watches the light turn green and he pushes the door open, holding it open for her and smirking at her confusion. 

“When did you…?” she asks, walking over the threshold and immediately forgetting that Rio has a key to her room. 

Inside the suite, there’s a kitchenette to the right and a large living area with a pull-out couch. Annie’s belongings litter the floor and surfaces there. and she briefly hopes her sister will have the wherewithal to stay away for a bit. She feels his eyes on her as she walks past the mess into the bedroom. A king-sized bed lies in the middle of the room and the city lights blink and sparkle in an amazing view to the left. 

Rio follows her in, closing the door behind him and she hears an audible ‘click’ of the lock. In an instant he's wrapping around her with an immediacy that causes her to gasp, and pulling at the tie of her wrap dress. She feels the silky material fall all the way down to her ankles, his hands following its path. 

“Need to feel your skin,” he rasps out, grabbing at the flesh of her thighs, her stomach. “ _Damn you’re soft.”_

Beth whimpers at the urgency coming from him and grinds back against him, touching his legs and holding him to her. She arches into him, his scent enveloping her as his fingers dip into the front of her lace panties. 

She can’t help but cry out in relief when he feels her wetness and breathes heavy against her ear... as he presses against her most sensitive spot before dipping lower, his finger slipping into her entrance. 

Rio squeezes her breast with his other capable hand, pinching her nipple through her bra as he works her down below and she moves helplessly against him, chasing the peak that began on the dance floor and is fast approaching. 

“Look at us.”

His voice pulls her back and she opens her eyes, seeing their reflection in a mirrored vanity in front of them. She continues to move against him, taking in the scene before her.

He’s a head taller than her without her heels and his golden skin is a stark contrast against her own creamy flesh. She leans into him, watching as he rubs her in circles beneath the scrap of black lace. Somehow he’s holding her up and bringing her off at the same time, and she’s overwhelmed by the strength of him, her stomach muscles clenching as she nears the precipice. Rio slows his movements, and her eyes slip closed as she starts fluttering against his fingers. 

“Open your eyes,” he says and she does, watching his face as she comes on his fingers, the way she’s affecting him apparent from the pull of his eyebrows and the way his mouth goes slack. 

Suddenly he’s moving them forward, taking off his shirt as he goes and when her hips hit the large vanity, he gathers her hair up on the top of her head and pulls her gently to the side, giving him access to her neck. 

Beth’s hands rest lightly on the surface in front of her but she aches to touch him as his lips kiss a trail up the back of her neck. He drops her hair then and runs his hand down her spine, stopping at her bra clasp and unhooking it, then bringing both hands to the straps at her shoulders and pulling them down. 

She hears his breath catch at the sight of her bare breasts and his hands are quick to cover them.. squeeze them. He fingers her nipples softly, then a little rougher until she’s keening and grinding back against his cock. 

Rio’s hands drop to her hips and then run over her ass, his fingers slipping under the thong’s fabric between her cheeks and he tugs hard, snapping the material. He drags his hand up her spine again, pressing her into the dresser which, thankfully, is the perfect height for the bend in her hips. She allows him to coax her down, her breasts smashing underneath as she leans her forearms on the cold surface. 

He hums behind her and keeps his hand resting lightly at the top of her ass, massaging her lower back as he undoes his pants and lets them drop. She watches him stroke himself in the mirror, feeling a fresh rush of wetness coat her at the sight. He’s so…she’d forgotten how.. well she hadn’t _forgotten_ but… her eyes tip up to see he’s watching her watch him and the heat of his gaze is scorching. 

Rio smoothes over her ass, squeezing handfuls of her flesh and then reaches under and touches her, trailing a line with two fingers from her clit all the way past her aching, wet entrance, and when she clenches he chuckles, bringing his fingers back to push into her. 

“ _Ohh..”_

“ _Mm_.. S’good, Ma?” he pants out. 

“So-- _uhh_... Yess..” 

He presses in all the way, curling his fingers and pulls them out slowly only to sink them back in.

His hands are something else, and she’s had an obsession with them for a long time. Often dreams of him touching her, bringing her off, caressing her and even comforting her sometimes; even if it’s just a squeeze to the shoulder like he’d done so many times before.

But this, the real thing is... 

“Your hands feel so good,” she says, the words slipping out before she can stop them. 

“Mm...” he moans, “your _pussy_ feels good.”

Rio pulls his hand away and grips her, the moisture coating her and sliding along the skin of her hip. He pushes the head of his cock into her and she whimpers, pressing back in an attempt to impale herself on him, desperate to feel him filling her. 

“ _Easy_ … wanna take my time.” He enters her slow— stretching her deliciously, and Beth whispers a curse as the sensations overwhelm her. “Missed this…” he says, breathless on an exhale and she moans when he’s all the way in, his grip on her hips tight. 

Rio hums lowly and stays buried deep as his hands soften and run over her ass and up her back again, all the way to her hair where he runs his fingers through, letting her silky locks filter through. He tangles one hand there while the other returns to her hip and she clenches around him, an urgency rising.

She feels herself spasming and throbbing uncontrollably-- her clit aching to be touched-- her every nerve-ending alive and tuned into him… _only him..._

He starts to pump in and out, slowly at first and then faster, and she bounces back against him finding their rhythm and it's so good, so _perfect_ the slide of his cock; like nothing she’s ever felt. And then he starts fucking her harder, his hand gripping her hair roughly, pulling her head back and she closes her eyes and just takes it —feeling a gush of wetness every time he pounds into her, the sound of them spurring her on even more and bringing her so much closer. 

“Ohh... _uh_ ” 

“Yea?’ 

“Mhh...please..” 

“Love those noises you make… haunt my fuckin' dreams... Come on my cock, baby.”

His words are staccatoed, the wrecked sound of his voice undoing her even more. 

Rio lets go of her hair to pull her up a bit, holding her tight with one hand while the other moves south. His thrusts slow a fraction but they’re full of power and purpose and as soon as he touches her clit she comes hot and bright, color exploding behind her eyelids. 

He leans closer, pulling her back fully into his chest again, and groans deep into her neck, kissing and licking and biting her as he continues to fuck her sated body… she reaches behind and encourages him with one hand, the other atop his; fingers clasped across her belly. 

Soon she feels him pulsing inside of her and her moans melt into quick whimpers when he grabs her tighter and curses, his hips stuttering. 

“Yes.. ah..”

Beth cries out as he fills her hotly, turning her face into his and searching out his lips. He kisses her passionately, the sounds of their satisfaction pouring down one another’s throats like living water. 

After a few moments of come-down, she turns in his arm and kisses him again, pushing him toward the bed and he falls onto it bringing her with him.

They lay there for a long moment, reacquainting one another with their lips, breathing each other in. Soon she’s yawning so they scoot up to the pillows and somehow manage to get under the covers, but not without banging their heads together. 

"You got a hard head, Mama," he says, laughing as she rubs her head and she feels something take hold inside of her at the sound of her old nickname.

To her surprise, Rio tugs her up next to him so she goes with it, lying against his shoulder. She hears his breathing even out pretty quickly. 

“Are you falling asleep?” she asks in amusement. 

“Mhm.” 

She lifts up and kisses his jawbone. 

“Be ready for me in a few hours, though,” he says, closing his eyes.

“I won’t hold my breath,” she says and he chuckles softly. 

The sound of their hearts compliment one another--the muted beats tempting her to relax and maybe it's the alcohol, but it feels right being in his arms, so she closes her eyes as well. 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



End file.
